do you think that it's fixable? >> sure. >> we like our pain pills in this country. >> it is fixable. i think now just bringing this out will have a lot of corrective impact. >> you're the chief of explaining things. what do you tell the american people about this? >> i would say, we're going to start a national conversation about this, but you need to have one in your family. you need to have one in your place of worship. you need to have one in our place of work. you need to make sure your kids talk about it in school. we need to understand that it is a good thing to alleviate pain. it is a bad thing to kill people through abuse of those aleve yagss. >> in a nation overflows with so many pills with some wanting the quick trick, so many prescribers and misusers of medications, we have to find a way to prevent people from taking a deadly dose.

from cnn world headquarters in atlanta, this is "cnn sunday morni morning." let than 48 hours until the day of reckoning. what do you want on to tell congress sdm we have your video messages. the woman accused of pushing a man front of a moving subway is being charged with a hate crime. in the top things we learned in 2012, trust us, you will be impressed. good morning. i'm alison kosik in for randi kaye. it's 8:00. thanks for starting your morning with you. we begin this morning in washington, and the focus is on capitol hill as lawmakers try to work out and vote on a deal to avoid the fiscal cliff. both houses of congress are meeting in a rather sunday session. the senate convenes aat 1:00 eastern and the house at 2:00.

our chief white house correspondent jessica yellen with the look at the chances for a deal and what's on the table. >> here in washington there is still hope a deal can be cut in time to avert the fiscal cliff. on saturday the president was at work here in the white house, but all eyes were on the senate where negotiators were trading deal points and revenue figures to try to reach an agreement all sides can stomach. the baseline for the president, any bipartisan bill has to extend unemployment insurance that would affect some 2 million americans, and increase taxes for the highest income earners. negotiators can still work out exactly where that tax increase would hit and whether they would halt an increase in the estate tax. in case those discussions break down, the president has asked democratic leader harry reid to prepare a separate bill to put on the floor of the senate that would raise taxes on households that earn $250,000 or more.

that's really a democratic proposal, and you can expect republicans to block it. rather than thinking of that as a stop gap measure, you should probably think of it it as a political measure to shift the responsibility for failure onto republicans just before the nation hits the hour of reckoning. alison. >> thanks. with everyone from the president to republican leaders expressing hope for a deal by tomorrow night, at least one congressman says the chances look slim to none. listen to virginia democrat jim moran as he describes why he'll likely vote against a deal. >> my congressional district would be the hardest-hit if we go over the fiscal cliff. i have tens of thousands of federal employees and a great deal of defense spending would be at risk. so if we don't suspend the sequester and it looks like this very small deal may not even achieve that, then i'd have to be a no vote. so if i had to guess right now,

i don't think we're going to be able to reach a deal no matter how small it might be. >> a vote could take place later today, and you can watch coverage right here on cnn. the president will continue to plead his case for a deal today. he's making his first appearance on a sunday talk show in more than three years. he's on nbc's "meet the press." mr. obama is expected to call for an immediate vote by congress on a scaled-back plan that would only extend middle class tax breaks and unemployment benefits if the congressional negotiations fail. fears over the fiscal cliff are weighing heavily on u.s. stocks, which posted five straight days of losses. the dow had a triple-digit loss on friday. the nasdaq and s&p 500 entered the day and week in the red. i spoke with one wall street trader about mow a deal could help the markets get back in the green. >> listen, if we get a deal and we get a deal that's substantive and realistic and that the market believes, i think the

market will rally back and certainly rally back to the 1425, 1440 level. they won't go back it to 1475 unless they pull the complete rabbit out of the hat. i don't think that will happen. the market will certainly rally. you can feel it. every time one comes out and is optimistic, you see the market try to take back some of the losses because it wants a settlement and a resolution. the fact is it's not getting it. the market will vote with its feet, which is what happened this past week. >> in addition to the fiscal cliff, investors have their eye on the jobs market. the latest unemployment report from the government is expected to be released friday. the new year means new members of congress will officially get to work this week. one of the first duties of the 113th congress? elect party leaders. house speaker john boehner could face a challenge.

also on the agenda changes in committee assignments and possible revisions to house and senate rules. to massachusetts now where heavy snow is pounding the state and bringing with it freezing temperatures. boston could see up to 8 inches of snow today. the city's mayor has already declared a snow emergency. a top priority is getting the roads cleared for public safety. >> my guys live for this, so they're at their best when this kind of weather comes along. they're all geared up. it's like christmas morning for them. >> the neighbors to the south in rhode island are breaking out the shovels this morning. we'll show you that video. about a foot of snow has already fallen in some parts of the state. i know it's wintertime and it's supposed to snow, but these are the big snows so it's always interesting and kind of fun if you're not in it to look at the video. cnn i-reporters have been busy send inning photos. these are from mark ivy in farmersbu farmersburg, indiana.

keep those pictures coming. fiscal cliff, debt, and egos. how much of what is going on in washington is about what's right versus who's right? one doctor has some suggestions for the decision-makers. [ male announcer ] it's that time of year again. time for citi price rewind. because your daughter really wants that pink castle thing. and you really don't want to pay more than you have to. only citi price rewind automatically searches for the lowest price. and if it finds one, you get refunded the difference. just use your citi card and register your purchase online. have a super sparkly day! ok. [ male announcer ] now all you need is a magic carriage. citi price rewind. start saving at citi.com/pricerewind. i get congested. but now, with zyrtec-d®, i have the proven allergy relief of zyrtec®, plus a powerful decongestant. zyrtec-d® lets me breath freer, so i can love the air. [ male announcer ] zyrtec-d®. behind the pharmacy counter.

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[ horn honks ] [ buzzing continues ] [ male announcer ] the sprint drive first app. blocks and replies to texts while you drive. we can live without the &. visit sprint.com/drive. good morning, washington. the focus is on you today as you reconvene talking about the fiscal cliff, and a cold wind is blowing there today not just outside but i assume inside that capitol building as well. outside, 40 degrees and windy as everyone waits to see what, if anything, will come out of the nation's capitol today in the way of a deal on the fiscal cliff. as we come dangerously close to the edge of the fiscal cliff, we are pushed along with partisan politics, debt decisions and some would say

lots of ego, too. yes, ego. cnn spoke with the aauthor of "the best in us." he has a take on how leaders can put aside their differences and get the job done. in your book you contend that the best leaders are more conscious leaders. you say less driven by normal, irrationalal maifrs. can you explain what that means, and how would that make the fiscal cliff negotiations different? >> yeah. the vast majority of our decision-making happens the at an automatic, unconscious level. the challenge and the problem -- i'm talking about most of our thinking. the challenge we have with that regard is the fact that most of the filtering system that we have that makes those decisions was put in place for us when we were small children. as a result, really smart people can make really dumb decisions, or grown-ups can behave

childishly. if a leader is more conscious of the patterns, they can cut them off and maintain a great degree of consciousness and therefore maturity in making decisions and acting on those. >> but we see both sides really dug in. we now seem to be in an impasse. are you saying that there's childish behavior? we take about transformative leadership perspective. how do you advocate and advise, let's say, speaker boehner and president obama? how do we move past that? >> you know, one of the fundamental problems we run into when we think about the unconscious is the fact we're driven by the need to be right or the need to look good. one of the things that i would advise and encourage speaker boehner and president obama to consider is the extent to which some of their behavior is driven more by the need to be right and look good than about what is really in the best interest. it seems like a simple thing, but when people can become aware of some of these deeper

patterns, they can shift off of them and be more adult and make better decisions. so my advice would be become more effectively aware of things driving them. >> do you think there's either one more at fault than the other? >> you know, they probably at this point speaker boehner simply because he's more backed into the corner. president obama has the better hand, and everybody knows that. as a function of that, boehner has to consider what are his options? his options are conscripted. when they're conscripted, people act more unconsciously and people go back to old patterns. the advice would serve boehner a little more than obama, but let's not be fooled here. even when things are in our favor, we still are seduced into this kind of behavior. >> we hope that some of the powers that be have been watching this, and we do hope we get past this. thank you so much for joining

us. >> mish pleasure. thank you, nadya. >> as the year drawing to the close, the school shootings in newtown, connecticut have sparked a national debate about gun control, and it's also motivating gun buy-backs in cities across the country. some gun owners say they don't want to keep their weapons in the wake of the deaths of 20 children in newtown. cnn reports from bridgeport, connecticut, which is holding the biggest gun buy-back in its ift. r >> reporter: william porter said he's done with guns. the elementary school shooting in nearby newtown, connecticut, struck a nerve. >> my wife cried. we were out shopping, and we heard it in the store. she cried. you know, it's wrong. >> okay. how are you doing? >> i'm good. >> reporter: porter is turning over his handgun to police in kondz's most populous city, pat of bridgeport's largest gun buy-back ever. with well over $100,000 in private donations, police are taking the weapons no questions asked.

>> i know that every gun we take in is one less gun that has the potential to kill our children. >> more than 100 guns have been collected in each of the first two days and are expected to be melted down. with millions more scattered across the u.s., can buy-backs like this one make a dent? >> these guns could have created victims, and we know that if we can reduce the number of weapons that are available through breaking into people's houses and grabbing guns, we are a safer society. >> bridgeport's police chief says an attempt to organize a similar gun buy-back failed last year due tie lack of funding, but not this time. >> we've seen an outpouring from the community since sandy hook in all manners from, you know, teddy bears to cash. i think this is part of it. i think people want to feel safe. >> for porter, a gun locked

safely in his home ended up in the hands of his foster child, who he says then handed it over to a gang member. >> if that person would have done something to somebody else with that gun, it would have fallen back on me. i'm 52 years old. i haven't had a criminal record all my life. >> police say that's how even legal guns can pose a danger. >> i don't know that we're ever going to be able to disarm every bad guy here. what we're doing is taking away the possibility. we're taking away the chance for a bad guy to get another gun. >> porter says he got lucky. >> it did go into the wrong hands, but i got it back. it's getting destroyed now. >> reporter: now he has a little more cash in his possibility. >> thank you. >> that was david ariosa with that report irnlgts the terrifying moment of impact caught on tape. a passenger airline hurdles to the ground in russia and sends debris onto a busy highway right in the path of oncoming cars. ♪

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syria has seen 21 months of

war. this weekend may have been the worst yet. more than 300 people were killed yesterday aalone. that's the highest toll since the devastating civil war erupted. this is a grim milestone, that saturday could be the deadliest day yet in syria's civil war? >> that's right, alison. the numbers from activists are staggering even by standards that we've grown accustomed to in syria where we routinely these days hear of death tolls over 100 a day, especially in the past week. we're talking about at least 397 people reported dead throughout syria yesterday as a result of the violence there. this unabating civil war raging for so long. we're told by opposition activists that at least 200 of these people were killed in hunts province. they say after the syrian regime recaptured the town, they took

hundreds of people away and that they executed them, summarily executed them. activists say they got the intelligence from a captured syrian soldier who told them about the massacre. one doctor in the area said he had examined bodies when had been killed by stabbing and shooting. they said that there was the sterch of a lot of bodies burned as well. very gruesome, grizzy reports emerging from the town today. we expect to hear more in the hours to come. >> why has the fighting intensified despite the fact there's calls for peace? >> what's happening in syria right now ithat the rebels seem to be gaining momentum. they're captures more territories, especially in the northern part of syria. they've also gotten a foothold in a lot of parts of damascus that's very worrying to the regime. the fact of the matter is the syrian regime still has air power and helicopters and

gunships and war planes. when the rebel free syria army seizes a town or territory, it's not that far after that then the war planes come in and start to bomb. it grinds on. it's a war of attrition, and it's this seesaw battle that keeps going and going. even though there's so much bip mattic flurry of activity toend the stalemate there with a political solution, it doesn't make an impact on the ground. >> the u.n.-arab league envoy for syria is it in cairo. does he have a proposal to end the conflict at this foipoint? >> reporter: he's had a proposal for a while new actually. i went to several places. he went to syria to meet with assad and went to russia to meet with the russian foreign minister. they urged them to have a political solution. today the joint u.n.-arab league

enon invoice is in cairo to report on his trips these past several days to tell him about the progress. he had a press conference a little while ago where he talked about how dire the situation is in syria. take a listen to some of what he had to say. >> translator: the situation in syria is really bad, and it is only rapidly deteriorating. therefore, if nearly 50,000 people have been killed in about two years, do not expect just 25,000 people to die next year. maybe 100,000 will die. the situation is deteriorating rapidly. >> reporter: that's shocking to hear from the peace envoy saying that possibly by next year if this continues you could see as many as 100,000 people dead in syria as a result of the fighting there. he said as far as he saw t-the syrian people had two choices. they can come together, the conflicting parties there and come to a political agreement. on he said it will be hell for the syrians. he said he heard of plans to try

to split the country into different territories. he thinks that will lead to it becoming like somalia. >> thanks. her brutal attack and death have sparked protests in india. now the body of a young indian woman beaten and gang raped has been cremated at a private ceremony in new delhi. she died in singapore where she was taken for treatment after the attack. she had planned to marry her boyfriend in february. six suspects are charged with murder. an injured pakistani soldier has narrowly escaped an apparent mass execution of his colleagues. he's hospitalized as pakistani officials say they found the bodies of 21 tribal police officers in a remote, mountainous region. they apparently were killed by taliban milt tants that abducted them during an attack on thursday. now we want to show you dramatic video. it captures the moment when a russian passenger plane hurdled

to the ground and sent debris onto a highway in moss kouchlt a tire, luggage, and pieces of the airport smashed onto the ground and road hitting a passing car yesterday. another driver captured the scene on his car's dashboard camera. four crew members on the plane were killed and four others were injured. >> translator: a tu-204 passenger plane during landing at the airport overshot the runway. as a result the plane was partially destroyed and its right engine caught fire. rescue workers and firefighters responded in a speedy manner and were able to put out the fire quickly. >> the cause of the crash is under investigation. it's the last days on the newsstand for a magazine icon. "newsweek's" final cover hits the stands tomorrow. we're going to take a look at it. t just listen to me. listen to these happy progressive customers. i plugged in snapshot, and 30 days later, i was saving big on car insurance. with snapshot, i knew what i could save

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[ male announcer ] icy hot arthritis lotion. powerful encapsulated menthol gets icy to dull pain, hot to relax it away. power past pain. welcome back to cnn sunday morning. i'm alison kosik in for randi ka kaye. bottom of the hour. here are the stories we're keeping an eye on this hour. it's down to the wire in washington. less than 48 hours left for congress to make a deal and avoid the fiscal cliff. leaders from both political parties have expressed hope that a deal can be reached.

in the senate negotiators worked late into the night trying to put together a plan, and the whole senate will come together in a few hours from now for a rare sunday session beginning at 1:00. an hour later the house will meet. in a world far away from the capitol, everyday americans are growing frustrated with political leaders and their lack of action when so much is at stake. we asked or cnn i-reporters to send us their messages for washington and we got a ton of responses. lynn to vernon hill with a bit of advice for politicians. >> my new year's message it to washington is to grow up, act like adults, do juror jobs or resign immediately. we are tired of you being useless and refusing to do your jobs. >> here's one from missy with her take on the men and women in congress. >> this whole fiscal cliff mess shows how incredibly out of touch you are with the way people really live in this

country. you are off in la-la land and everyone is saying how you're acting like a bunch of spoiled brats who are more interested in being right than in doing the right thing and actually representing the people that elected you. >> and look what alberto sent in, a reminder lawmakers are there to serve everyone and can be voted out if they don't. >> my new year's message to washington is this. there are not enough wealthy people and corporations to keep you in office. in tlit most importantly support middle class policies. >> it's the site of the worst oil spill in u.s. history. now more than two years later we're getting an up close look at wreckage of the deep water horizon brig. the u.s. coast guard released these images following a survey this month. there were reported of a recurring oil sthesheen in the t no sources were found. the well was closed and cemented

in september of 2012. second-degree murder as a hate crime is the charge facing erica menendez. >> eraierica, why did you do it? >> she's accused of shoving a man to death in front of a subway train on thursday. she said she pushed the victim because, quote, i hate hindus and muslims. it's a feeling she's had since the september 11th attacks. it's the second time this month someone was pushed doet from a new york subway platform. the new year is days away. here's a look at what will be legal and illegal in the year 2013. >> well, some local laws already made headlines this year. gay marriage was passed in maryland and maine, and the recreational use of marijuana was passed in colorado and in

washington state. wait, there's more, much more. let's start with the laws that take effect on january 1st. so in illinois and california employers may no longer force employees to provide the passwords to their stoeshl media accounts, and the same is true if you apply for a job in either state. speaking of job secrets, check out oregon. employers cannot at this time a job list inning that state until they are willing to hired unemployed. in maryland arsenic is banned this chicken feed. why? it's aimed to protect the waters of the chesapeake bay from toxins. in california this made headlines, too. that state is banning the treatment aimed at changing the sexual orientation of anyone under 18. if you're a fan of sharks, you'll like this. the possession, sale or trade of shark fins is illegal in illinois. in florida if you own a swamp buggy, don't have to register it

as a motor vehicle vehicle. and in kentucky here's one. it is illegal to release a wild hog into the wild. yes, that is what the new law says we're today. in 2013 some folks may see a bump in their paychecks. great news. in ten states they decided to raise the minimum wage. back to you. >> and that was stacy cohen. good news this morning about former president george h.w. bush. we're told he's improving and moved out of the intensive care unit at the houston hospital where he was being treated foorn elevated treatment. he was given an extra boost over the phone by the oak ridge boys. ♪ amazing grace how sweet the sound ♪ >> it was former first lady barbara bush that called the band on friday to request the special performance. secretary of state hillary clinton is also feeling better. her spokesman says she'll be back at work this week after

spending the past three weeks fighting off what the state department was a stomach flu and a concussion brought on by a fainting spell. doctors grounded her from over seas travel for a few more weeks. she may testimony about the attack on the u.s. diplomatic office in benghazi. i love youtube. can be a huge time waste or a good laugh from the videos there. did you know you can get a job enter sprinterview from that si? we have the story of the football kicker who got noticed by the nfl. >> reporter: it may be the latest youtube sensation. a 28-year-old norweigan, he and his name famous left foot have been viewed nearly 2 million times. >> i got it, and things started to calm down a little bit. in maybe a week or so after i got an e-mail from the new york jets. >> that's the nfl's new york jets. >> the e-mail asked and told me

that they liked what they were seeing and i should contact them if i would be interested in a tryout with the new york jets. i, of course, thought this was some of my friends joking around. >> reporter: it was no joke, so the counselor make the trek from a small foun in norway to the u.s. for a jets tryout just before christmas. >> it went very well. they liked what they you saw. >> reporter: so do viewers on youtube, and while some tricks took more than one try, he insists that nothing is phony. >> i'm not a computer guy. >> as for football, he may be modeling his game after oakland raider sebastian janikowski. but the so-called polish cannon was accustomed to american football before making the leap to the pros after florida state. rugland, not so much. have you ever kicked with line of angry guys running towards you? >> no. >> you worried about that?

>> no, not very. so i'm good. i kicked a lot in soccer when p people try to take me out, so i think i'd do pretty good. >> they're a little bit bigger here, though. >> yeah, but they aren't that close. so i think i will be able to handle it. >> he concedes that he'll need to get his kicks off a bit qu k quicker. >> i'll be back in noshgsz to see if the jets think i'm good enough. i'll do my best. >> cnn, new york. grab a kleenex and say good-bye to thumbing through copies of "newsweek" at your doctor's office. after 80 years they'll be going all digital. the editor in chief said the growing use of tablet computers combined with the weakness in print advertising force the decision. january, the month when millions of americans vow to hit

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and the count jodown to 201s on. from ball drops to champagne toasts, millions around the world are set to ring in the new year. there's one more tradition that many observe, making resolutions. in today's "faces of faith," my next guest says your faith should be a key part of the goals. joining me is rabbi -- >> happy new year. >> the top resolution is to usually get out and exercise and lose weight and get control of your finances. while we live in an external world, we need to make internal changes. what do you mean by that? >> i'm someone who goes to the gym a great bit, so i think that's an important part. >> good for you. >> i think that a lot of our goals are external goals, but it really, for me, matters how we

feel about our lives, p if our lives are going in a particular direction. for us to be driven by external things about our appearance or finances only gets half the picture. and really our body and mind and our spirits are all connected and we need to attend to them. the new year is a great time to check in. >> so going to houses of worship is that way to economic in iche assuming? >> there are lots of ways. there are certainly one. any opportunity for reflection -- one of the things from my tradition at the new wish new year in the fall a lot turns to attention towards our relationships. how we feel about loved ones. are there ways to make amends to folks and ways to forgive ourselves? for our secular new year to do some of the same things is incredibly important. going to a place of worship can uplift spirits and find community. there are lots of other ways as well. >> often it's hard for people to

stop in nir busy lives and take stock on what else is going on in their lives besides the material things. how do you get people just to stop? it's all fine and well to say you're going to do it, but to find that time to reflect it's hard to fit it in. it's more than five minimum he ni minutes later in the afternoon, right? >> it's hard. in part we allow technology to drive us. i know for me my friends would criticize me for how connected i am to my phone sometimes, but i think that we have to see that it's incredibly important as someone who has pick upd a meditation practice to really set aside that time to be disciplined about that like other things. i think we can really connect and uplift all the other activities we do, even if it's ten minutes a day to set aside some quiet time and reflection. maybe it's the first thing in the morning. maybe it's ten minutes before going to bed. we really need to take better

jobs at taking stock of our lives so we have a little bit more control and not let things run us. >> how about other things, spending time in nature and volunteers. how can that help us restore our faith? >> absolutely. part of what we want to do as human beings is connect to the adventure of living. we want to be able to experience the wonder of the world, and sometimes it is about connecting with something larger like nature and feeling a transcendent power of the beauty of an amazing sky and out in the woods. it's cold right now, so maybe get out of ourselves by volunteering. i had a difficult year personally last year, and one of the best things i did for myself, it was almost my resolution, was to volunteer. it really helped me kind of get out of my own sob stories and recognize that i have had something to contribute, and i also was able to hear other people's stories.

i felt like my lot was thrown in with other people and that we were trying to uplift each other. that's an awesome way to begin the year. >> all right, rabbi lesser, this has been interesting. for more stories on faith, check on out our widely popular belief blog at cnn.com/belief. we want to say a big good morning to you, new york city. you've got a high of about 31 degrees there today. cold. not warm at all. that's not going to stop the thousands of people who will head to times square for the new year's countdown happening tomorrow. and making sure that it is a festive time, the airworthiness of the confetti was tested yesterday. plenty to go around and the cleanup afterwards. leading our coverage from times square, anderson cooper and kathy griffin. they will host as the new year is welcome around the world. the countdown begins at 10:00

p.m. eastern time tomorrow night. from new york city it to washington, d.c., the nation's capital is just as busy today with a little less fanfare and lots of fiscal decisions made there today. we'll check in after the break. when you have diabetes... your doctor will say get smart about your weight. i tried weight loss plans... but their shakes aren't always made for people with diabetes. that's why there's glucerna hunger smart shakes.

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tomorrow is monday. we could see a vote on the fiscal cliff. we can only hope, of course. without a deal, about 90% of all u.s. households are going to have to shell out more faxes on average about 3500 more dollars a year. also on monday happy new year. come on, screen. there we go. happy new year. it's new year's eve. catch live celebrations from around the world right here on cnn. anderson cooper and comedian kathy griffin are live in times square. tuesday, it's 2013. sleep late, why don't you, because wednesday could be a pretty big day. we'll see what will happen with the fiscal cliff because if we go off the cliff, $1.2 trillion in spending cuts could go into effect. if there's one part of the fiscal cliff that everybody agrees on, it's trying it to avoid this. it's an interesting day in the markets. we're going to see how the markets open on wednesday. if there's a fiscal cliff deal, you could see the markets rally. and on tuesday john boehner, the

113th congress is sworn in and john boehner is expected to be elected to his second term as house speaker by a vote in the house. we'll see if everyone plays nice in the sandbox and work together to solve the country's problems in 2013. if you're sitting down to breakfast, this bowl of cereal, that milk can get more expensive if a fiscal cliff deal is not reached. that gallon of milk might cost as much as $7. cnn's candy crowley spoke with secretary of agriculture tom vilsack. $7 milk? this is known as the dairy cliff, right? >> yes, it is. we've been so focused on other kinds of cliffs, but, in fact, because there is no farm bill, they revert back to some laws that were enacted in the 1940s. it would cause -- because milk won't be, if you will, propped up, it would cause milk prices

too almost double, at least according to the agriculture secretary. they're working on a fix, something like that which hits consumers so hard. they'll notice that immediately is likely to be something that congress does do something about. my guess is they will just extend the farm bill for another year, which will in some ways hurt farmers, but in other ways it gets the job done in the whole of it and gets an agriculture bill at least for another year while they work out whatever their problems were this year. they had pretty much knew for a year that this agriculture -- the farm bill was going to expire. they haven't gotten around to it. >> exactly. when something that everybody can relate to, higher milk prices, why wait until the last-minute? we ask that about everything. >> exactly. it's just how they work. this has real consequences. if you walk into the grocery store in two weeks and find milk prices have doubled, congress

will hear about it. that's why i think they'll do something in a flurry of activity. there are just some things that hit that are not going to sit well with americans, and i think they will do something to get it done for a year, just an extension. >> the big focus is on the tax hikes and spending cuts, the fiscal cliff. what do you have on the latest there? >> yeah. i'm not sure what will happen there. what is currently passing for hope is on saturday we saw senate aides walking back and forth between the offices of the republican leader and the democratic leader holding a piece of paper. we think that they are talking big numbers. in essence, we haven't heard a word on what's being done or what nare working on. in a lot of ways that's good. when leaders come to the microphone, it generally means one of two things. one is if they come together, they have a deal. if they come separately, they can't get anywhere.

silence might be okay for now, but time is running out, as you know. the senate has to be in session today, and the plan was for the senate to pass something and give the house tomorrow to deliberate about it. we'll see if that happens. >> let's switch gears here. i know our team was very impressed with a interview you conducted this week. look at this. >> i don't know if you know this story, candy. i lent kaish kathy griffin came to my muss in long island, and like a nice guy i sent her a key because she wanted to go a day in advance. that night -- >> to clean up the place. >> first of all, she arrived and was terribly disappointed. i think she that was it was a house dour on downton abby. she arrives and during the news that night during commercial breaks i receive tweets -- not tweets but text messages from her. >> sexts. >> she's sending me naked

pictures of her sprawled out on my couch and draped over the kitchen counter. >> excuse me. i think candy has done that on a daily basis. >> how comfortable did you feel in that interview, candy? >> not at all. is that a good enough answer? here is how when you get those two together, do you an interview. so let me give you the floor for five minutes, because that's what happens anyway. you ask a question and they're off and running. everybody gets a chance to do that on new year's eve. they will be off and running. >> it will be fun. i'll watch. thank you, candy. >> sure, thanks. >> keep it here. it starts at 9:00 a.m. eastern time right here on cnn. and the year is almost history, but what's the take away? comedian dean is up with us with top 12 lessons of 2012. that's true. ...but you still have to go to the gym. ♪ the one and only, cheerios

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you've got to look at this. one of the sweetest videos we saw this weekend. he can't talk yet, but he's turning heads on the slopes in quebec. meet this 18-month-old blazing a trail on the snowboard and bringing his pacifier along for the ride. there it is. it's not just him. his 3-year-old sister abigail is also on the hill. both are following in the footsteps of their dad who is a big fan of sport. we're about to leave 2012 behind, but are you smarter than a year ago? other friend says we all are, so, dean, hello. >> good morning. >> good morning. you wroet an op-ed for cnn.com with a list of 12 things you say america learned this year. you say we picked up a new language this year. what are you talking about? >> i think we are a little smarter than we were. we know a little more than we did 365 days ago. like it or not, it's he drilled into our head. one is korean thanks to the hit

song gangnam style by psy. it means south of river in core reian. it's cheaper than rosetta stone. if you watch the video, you can do the horse dance. it involves your hands. >> yes, it does. >> we learned two things there. a dance and a korean word. >> you say we learned some people just don't like silver? >> no. macay makayla maroney got a silver medal and said i'm not impressed. you give me free silver, i'm very happy and smile and say thaw. she worked for years to get a gold medal, and i can understand why she wasn't impressed. >> the election this year definitely took center stage. politics has taken center stage, even though they're controlling our lives at this point. how can we laugh at this. >> you have to laugh at it our

lose your mind. we learned a lot of lessons this year from politics. some serious and some funny. one of the biggest lessons is from clint eastwood. you can have a conversation with your furniture and it's okay. me and my couch are getting along much better than we used to. thank you for teaching me that one. >> what about poultry? i heard that's a political tool. >> it went from something you eat to a political statement thanks to chick-fil-a and the whole idea of marriage equality. the head of chick-fil-a said he was against marriage equality. a couple days later a kiss-in, people in favor of gay marriage. it's not just chicken anymore. this is how hyperpartisan our country has become. >> do you believe america is the best democracy money can buy? >> america is the best democracy, absolutely. as i write in my article. in the last presidential cycle we sent over $2